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so saturday april 3 2004 economist sun suntribune diversions audition lessons learned through trial and error actors must balance risktaking by simone joseph staff writer it took cassandra bourne an hour longer than it should have to get to her audition a snowstorm hit during her drive from markham to toronto and she could not see five feet in front of her car the practice room was filled with people haying lunch so she could not prepare her song in peace she slipped on the wet floor as she headed to the auditioning room by the time ms bourne reached her audition she was shaken i couldnt catch my breath she said for performers auditions are the equivalent of a job interview and sometimes no matter how well you know your reper toire practise a dance number or run through your lines things go wrong while ms bourne has had dozens of successful auditions the artistic director of the york region opera felt she flunked this disastrous audition in toronto earlier this year and for some performers especially amateurs a failed audition can be devastating ms bourne said she learned from this experience how impor tant it is to take extra time to compose yourself take the time you need you have to give the best perform ance you can dont be afraid to say i need a moment s a major mistake people some times make when auditioning is forgetting to perform and focus ing too much on giving a perfect performance she said you have to have interpreta tion of the text you cannot just sland there and sing and hope staff photomike barrett cassandra bourne said many people forget to perform and focus too much on giving a perfect performance during auditions you have a lovely technique we directors are looking for some one who can convey ah emo tion show you understand what you are singing about and you care about the piece you per form she added jordan merkur artistic direc tor for the red barn theatre in gebrgina recommends taking risks in auditions it shows a passion for the work which is what im looking for he said he directed the comedy the last resort featuring a character that was an undercover police agent dressed as a woman called freida heitz last year even though there is an unwritten rule actors are not sup posed to touch the table where the director and producer sit people openly violated that rule a lot were being very funny and campy you would have six- foot people in heels people try- sce learn page 21 tips for auditioning for actors dont try to memorize the script instead familiarize your self with the copy you should be allowed to have the copy in your hand during the audition for reference the most impor tant thing to do with the copy is understand what is going on in the scene dont say you are sorry if you make a mistake during your audition simply pick up where you left off by doing this you wont draw attention to 1 your mistake dont block other actors and dont let other actors block you if youre auditioning with several actors in the room make sure the casting director or producer can always see their faces and yours the casting director may have you deliver me lilies a dif ferent way be ready to follow hisher direction listen care fully so you change your deliv ery correctly the biggest mis take j an actor can make during an audition is to deliver the linesexactly the isariie way after heshe was told to do them dif ferently for dancers try not to be the first or last person along the bane if you are last mere will be no one to follow ff you forget the steps the person who goes first may begiven conservative scores or be forgotten by the end when they teach you a combination to perform try to do it exactly the way the chore- see enjoying page 21 anne brodie on movies princely movie falls short with cowardly finish the prince and me starring julia stiles and luke mably directed by martha coolidge f l 1 he ruling demographic as any- i one who watches tv knows is i tweens to 20s the age you are when you and your friends want to sit in a car and rock out with big macs the age you are when you go on group dates and wait breathlessly for the next film starring britney spears or cologne from mary kate and ashley the prince and me aspires to enter tain this age group with a nearly suc cessful relaunching of the cinderella story for a long while it is entertaining julia stiles is salt of the earth a mid west farm girl who has big dreams of a medical career with doctors without borders travelling the world and saving people she is enrolled in university and works part time at the college pub one day who should stroll into her pub but the prince of denmark himself english tv sensation luke mably plays the handsome prince with an innate good nature and believability seemingly oblivious to the awkward and unlikely route the story takes he has been a bad prince at home putting the royal lineage in jeopardy drag racing and being allowed to win by his minion friends and making the rounds of pretty royal wannabees based on seeing an american low brow tv sex romp similar to girls gone wild the prince figures happiness awaits him with his very own wild wisconsin bimbette see royal page 21 yajanyogfrwtiv aagp ijvumjrrimisjgjijij jiiim